News Bytes: Apple hacked, Google protests, digital licences

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Digital driver licences will be available for drivers on Sydney's eastern beaches. Source: NSW Gov

Digital driver licences come to SydneyResidents from Sydney’s Eastern Beaches will soon be able to try out the NSW government’s new digital driver licences (DDL). Minister for Finance, Services and Property, Victor Dominello, said “Parliament has approved new laws to enable a state-wide rollout of the technology. This trial will bring us a step closer to delivering on that promise.” Participants can opt-in to use their DDL via the Service NSW app. The Sydney trial follows a large-scale trial in the regional city of Dubbo, where 1,400 local drivers tried out the licences. Sydney drivers in the postcodes 2022, 2024, 2026, 2031 and 2034 are invited to participate in the trial. As it is a trial, those who opt-in will still have to carry their physical licence.

Melbourne teen faces charges over Apple hackA Melbourne schoolboy is facing criminal charges over a hack which saw him break into Apple’s mainframe and access 90GB of secure files and customer accounts. The report, published in The Age, states that the teen broke into Apple’s system several times over a year “because he was such a fan of the company”. The Australian Federal Police executed a search warrant on the teenager’s house last year, during which two laptops, a mobile phone and hard drive were seized. It is reported that one of the computers contained a folder titled ‘hacky hack hack,’ containing hacking files and instructions. The offender was charged and has pled guilty. He will be sentenced next month.

Google staff revolt against China plansAround 1,400 Google employees have signed a letter opposing the search engine’s alleged return to China. Earlier this month it was reported that Google has been working on ‘Project Dragonfly’ in recent times – a censored version of the site that will abide by censorship requirements in a bid to appease the Chinese government. But The New York Times is now reporting that an internal letter has started to circulate around Google’s staff, stating that the censored requirements “raise urgent moral and ethical issues". The letter also states, “we urgently need more transparency, a seat at the table, and a commitment to clear and open processes: Google employees need to know what we’re building.”

Australia appoints Information Commissioner and Privacy CommissionerAngela Falk has been appointed as the Australian Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner on a three-year term. Falk has held senior positions in the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) since 2012. “The Commissioner role is critical to helping ensure the privacy of Australians, particularly in the online environment and I am confident Ms Falk is the appropriate candidate to meet this challenge,” said Attorney-General of Australia Christian Porter. Falk replaced Timothy Pilgrim who was in the role on an interim basis since March.